Research and Scholarship Advancement (RSA) Grant (formerly senate research grant)

Application Form

INSTRUCTIONS

Write your proposal with such clarity that it may be understood by ANY member of the committee. Keep in mind that the committee is interdisciplinary and reaches decisions by consensus.

The application is comprised of eight sections:

  • Section I to IV Proposal Narrative
  • Section V: Expected Outcomes/Related Funding
  • Section VI: Budget
  • Section VII: CV (any format, no more than two [2] pages, per PI; no CV is required for co-PI)

Sections I-V should be contained within 1 PDF file ((5 page limit, inclusive of any tables or figures you choose to include, plus one page for references so up to 6 total pages if you include a reference page) that you will upload in WVU +kc . CV will be an attachment uploaded on the personnel page. The budget will be entered directly into a field in the application through the Internal Grants Module of the WVU +kc system ( You will be able to use your WVUID login and do not need any extra permissions or training to use the internal grants module of +kc (although there is an FAQ sheet and training video available).

SEED GRANTS/SCHOLARSHIP GRANTS

Applicants must indicate if they are applying for a SCHOLARSHIP GRANT or a SEED GRANTonthe application page. Scholarship grants include research and other creative endeavors that traditionally do not attract external funding sources and will typically be in humanities and arts fields, although they may reside in others; these are for projects like publishing a book, writing a play, recording a CD, putting on an exhibit, collecting data at an archive, etc. In fields in which journal articles are the most common form of publication and you are proposing to gather data to write an article, this would typically fall into a seed grant. Seed grants are oriented to acquiring data, performing analyses, publishing results in peer reviewed journals, and pursuing research targeted at seeking external grant funding. Applications will only be reviewed for one grant program. Applicants cannot apply to both funding sources as PI in the same fiscal year and the committee reserves the right to reassign a grant if warranted. You are limited to one grant as PI and up to two as co-PI. The Senate Research Committee is dedicated to providing equitable funding to both application pools.

PERSONNEL

If you are requesting summer salary, specify the period during which you propose to receive such funds. Summer salaries will be considered only for nine-month employees, not to exceed $10,000 including fringe benefits. The salary funding restrictions also apply to Co-Investigators that are part of the project. Although the RSA grants are intended to support the activities of the primary investigator(s), the committee recognizes that certain projects require one or more assistants in order to fulfill important objectives. Please indicate clearly in your application why you need assistance, what the assistants’ qualifications are, and the basis for calculating their salaries (e.g., established university salary, minimum wage, etc.). In calculating the final budget, be sure to include the correct fringe benefit rates.

FUNDING LIMITS

Due to University budget constraints: The budget cap is $15,000 for projects in a single discipline or $18,000 for multidisciplinary projects. There is no longer a matching funds program. For an interdisciplinary project, you must identify your collaborators and explain the interdisciplinary nature of the project.

PRIVILEGED INFORMATION

No part of this proposal may be cited or reproduced without permission of the applicant(s), except as needed for committee review purposes.

Sections I-V should be contained within 1 PDF file (5 page limit, inclusive of any tables or figures you choose to include, plus one page for references, so up to 6 total pages if you include a reference page) that you will upload in WVU +kc. How you choose to allocate your 5 pages is completely up to you.

SECTION I – SIGNIFICANCE OF PROJECT

Clearly state the need for your project. Describe the contribution of your project towards increasing knowledge in the field of study.

SECTION II – BACKGROUND

Briefly summarize the current and significant work in the field of study of this proposal. Please be selective rather than exhaustive.

SECTION III – OBJECTIVES

Precisely list the objectives of the project considering time, funds, and available project personnel.

SECTION IV – PROJECT PLAN

Describe the experiments, methods of analysis, and/or other investigative approaches of the project. State what is to be done, when it is to be done, where it will be done, and who will do it. Provide evidence to demonstrate your ability to carry out such a project plan.

SECTION V – EXPECTED OUTCOMES

If successfully completed, indicate the anticipated contributions this project will make to your professional development and to the university. Please quantify the anticipated outcomes. Examples of academic research outcomes include the authorship of a journal paper, the presentation of a paper or work of art at a reputable forum, the production of an archival data set which will support substantive future research, etc. If you are applying for SEED funding, you must briefly outline your plans for the submission of a proposal for external funding. If you have any related funding, please note that here.

You will also be asked for an abstract of the project and will enter that on the application page in WVU +kc (1500 character limit)

SECTION VI - BUDGET

The budget should provide an important indication of the soundness and thoroughness of your proposal. Itemize the budget by the indicated categories. Do not include requests for ordinary equipment, supplies, or printing routinely provided by your department. YOU WILL ENTER YOUR BUDGET IN WVU +kc ; THE FORM BELOW IS SO THAT YOU CAN PREPARE A DRAFT OF THE BUDGET, BUT YOU WILL NOT SAVE THIS FORM AND UPLOAD IT, RATHER YOU WILL ENTER THE RELEVANT AMOUNTS ON EACH LINE IN WVU +kc .

On the budget form, there are four columns (see below). “Total Project Amount” is asking what the total cost of that item is to complete the project. “Funds from Other Sources” is asking what dollar amount of the total cost is coming from non RSA funds; the 3rd column asks what the source of those funds is. The final column “Funds Requested” is asking what dollar amount of the total costs is coming from RSA funds.

  1. For example, if you need $1000 in supplies and are requesting that your RSA grant cover the total costs, the Total Project Amount is $1000; the Funds from Other Sources is 0 (0 is the default, so you do not need to enter anything); and the Funds Requested is $1000.
  2. As another example, if you need to hire a technical assistant on the project whose total salary is $10,000, you would enter that in Total Project Amount; if $5,000 of that is paid from departmental funds, then in the Funds from Other Sources enter $5,000 and identify that it is from the department; in the Funds Requested Column, enter $5,0000. The totals within a column will automatically calculate.
  3. Note you are not required to have funding from other sources; this is an informational item.

Total Project Amount / Funds from Other Sources / Source / Funds Requested
Principal Investigator*
Co-Investigator*
Technical Assistant
Clerical Assistant
Other
Fringe Benefits
TOTAL PERSONNEL
Supplies
Printing
Travel**
Miscellaneous
TOTAL AMOUNT***

*Not to exceed $10,000 for salary including fringe benefits for each PI. The effort and time frame of PI and Co-I’s salary must be explained in the budget justification; please be as specific as possible as to why salary support is needed. Fringe benefits must be included for all personnel.

**Conference travel will only be supported at the same level as the faculty travel/development program limits each year and for only one conference (support for PI and one graduate student may be requested). See the travel grant guidelines. Travel to collections, archives, or to collect data is not limited.

BUDGET JUSTIFICATION (Required). Indicate clearly how each item in the budget will support your project. Identify the types of equipment, supplies, and printing needed. Give the basis for any travel expenses including destination, duration, mode, and cost of transportation, meals, and lodging in accordance with state travel regulations. If you are requesting summer salary, specify the period during which you intend to receive such funds. This will be entered into a text box on the budget page (6000 character limit)

SECTION VII – BIREF CV

Attach a brief, selective vitafor the PI only (no more than two pages) listing employment record, faculty rank, professional accomplishments, publications, etc. Any format is acceptable.

PREVOUS SENATE RESEARCH FUNDING: THESE QUESTIONS WILL BE ON THE WVU +kc MODULE AND YOU DO NOT NEED TO ANSWER THEM IN A SEPARATE FILE

Number of previous Senate Research grants received in past five years:

Please do not include any Faculty Travel or Development grants you may have received.

If you had a past Senate Research Grant, did it lead to you submitting an application for external funding?

Yes No

If yes, please indicate to whom the application was sent, dates of proposal(s), if it was funded, and if so, how much was awarded?

Is this an interdisciplinary project? Yes No

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